Why the French PM Resigned Following Only 27 Days – and What Could Happen Next
The French prime minister, Sébastien Lecornu, stepped down together with the cabinet, under a month after his appointment and within hours of the new cabinet being announced, dramatically deepening the country's governmental turmoil.
This marks the latest shock development following recent incidents that suggest France, Europe's second-largest economy, faces growing governance challenges. Let's examine recent developments, why – and future possibilities.
What Just Happened?
The prime minister, who was appointed 27 days ago, submitted his departure along with the entire cabinet this week, only half a day following the ministerial lineup reveal. He became the shortest-lived prime minister in modern French history.
Aged 39, ex-defense chief, a close ally of Emmanuel Macron, served as the fifth PM after Macron's second term and the third post-parliament dissolution and called early legislative elections that were held last summer.
Lecornu blamed party-political intransigence, stating he was “ready to compromise, yet all factions demanded others accept their entire agenda.” It would “not take much for it to work,” but “partisan attitudes” and “personal ambitions” stood in the way, he said.
The resignation alarmed markets, with the CAC 40 stock index dropping 2% and the euro declined 0.7%. The national debt ratio is the EU’s third-highest after Greece and Italy, almost twice the 60% permitted under EU rules – as is its projected budget deficit of nearly 6%.
Why Did It Happen?
Origins of the turmoil lie in that 2024 snap general election, that resulted in a split assembly split among three more or less equal blocs: left-wing groups, the far right & Macron’s own centre-right alliance, with no group coming close to a clear majority.
The economic downturn worsened the uncertainty, along with the 2027 presidential race. The president is term-limited, and with each party keen to stake out its ground before the vote, common ground in parliament is increasingly elusive.
Lecornu faced the tough job to approve spending cuts in a fractured parliament aimed at reining in the large fiscal gap – a task that defeated the previous two PMs, removed by lawmakers for similar efforts.
The immediate trigger for his resignation appears to have been response from conservative parties regarding the ministerial team. The party said the similar composition failed to represent the “profound break” from previous approaches that Lecornu had promised.
Revealing key ministries last Sunday prompted fierce criticism from all sides, with allies and opponents denouncing it for being too conservative or insufficiently so, and endangering its stability.
Reappointing Bruno Le Maire, long-time finance chief, to government as defence minister particularly enraged politicians from most parties, viewing it as proof that Macron’s pro-business economic policies were not up for discussion.
What Might Happen Now?
Nationalist parties of Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella has called on Macron to disband the assembly and call new votes, as leftist groups renewed demands for Macron's resignation.
The president faces three choices, all hazardous and none very appealing. Initially, he could name a new prime minister. Someone from his circle seems improbable, while even a moderate leftwinger would challenge his hard-won pension reform.
Alternatively, selecting a staunch conservative would infuriate the left bloc. Given the pressing need to secure some agreement to at least pass a budget for this year, experts propose he might consider a non-party political technocrat.
Second, he may dissolve parliament and call fresh legislative elections, an option he has resisted and surveys indicate could yield another split result – or potentially usher in an RN government.
His final option is stepping down, but again, he has refused to leave prior to the 2027 vote – an election viewed as pivotal in French politics, as Le Pen eyes a potential victory.
